Department of Agriculture

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins officially swore in Glen R. Smith of Atlantic (IA) as U.S. Department of Agriculture Under Secretary for Rural Development. Glen took his oath of office at a ceremony at the Iowa State Fair. Smith was born and raised in Iowa and has been farming for over 50 years, growing soy, corn, and hay. He also founded Smith Land Service Co., an ag service company specializing in farm management, land appraisal, and farm brokerage. He most recently served on the Farm Credit Administration Board of Directors from 2019-2022. 

Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins applauds the Senate confirmation of Glen R. Smith of Atlantic, Iowa, as U.S. Department of Agriculture Under Secretary for Rural Development. This reaffirms the Trump Administration’s commitment to rural America and the farmers, small towns, and rural communities. “Rural America is the backbone of this nation, and under President Trump, USDA is committed to ensuring our rural communities have the infrastructure, resources, and opportunity they need to thrive,” said Secretary Brooke Rollins.

U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development invites grant applications to build community-oriented, high-speed internet networks for people in rural areas. USDA Rural Development is making approximately $17 million available under the Community Connect Grant Program. The program provides financial assistance to eligible applicants that will provide broadband service in rural, economically challenged communities where service does not exist.

US Department of Agriculture Rural Development invites grant applications to improve access to remote education and health care in rural communities. USDA is making approximately $27 million in funding available under the Distance Learning and Telemedicine Grant Program. This program funds distance learning and telemedicine equipment, including audio and video equipment, to improve access to educational and health care opportunities in rural communities.

The Department of Agriculture published its 2027 Budget Summary.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture published a final rule removing requirements for the use of discriminatory racial and gender preferences in USDA programs when these requirements are not required by an act of Congress. “We are taking this aggressive, unprecedented action to eliminate discrimination in any form at USDA.

The United States Department of Agriculture, Rural Development (RD), which is comprised of the Rural Business-Cooperative Service (RBCS), Rural Utilities Service (RUS), and Rural Housing Service (RHS), is amending 14 program funding opportunities to remove references to the Biden Administration’s key priorities and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)-related scoring criteria to bring them into compliance with the Executive Order, ‘‘Ending Radical And Wasteful Government DEI Programs And Preferencing’’, issued on January 20, 2025.

Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins delivered remarks to hundreds of local leaders at the National Association of Counties. She spoke about vision for restoring rural prosperity to America. "We will ensure that USDA’s Rural Development programs are running as efficiently and effectively as possible to support the people they are intended to serve. We are carefully considering how we can improve programs to incentivize greater growth.